Vegetation Introduction

Vegetation and soil pedogeneic processes have an intricate relationship.  In 1984, Birkeland states that, "The biotic factor in pedogenesis is difficult to assess because of the dependence of both vegetation and soil on climate and the interaction of soil and vegetation (206)."  Figure 1 illustrates the interrelationship of climate, vegetation, and soil (Birkeland, 260).

Figure 1

Vegetation can be an indicator of soil characteristics such as pH, organic matter, soil saturation, mineral content, and clay distribution.  Plant communities can suggest which soil types exist under the earth’s surface.  On the other hand, studying the soil of an area indicates which vegetation can survive in that region.  In 1999, Birkeland described the interaction of vegetation with soil organic matter:

“Most of the trends with vegetation have to do with organic matter, base saturation, and pH.  If climate is kept constant, these trends include the following: (1) organic matter remains at higher levels with depth under grassland than under forest, and base saturation is higher under grassland; (2) all three properties vary with tree species; and (3) all three properties, as well as others such as clay and Fe content, vary with distance from a tree, due to the influence of rainwater coming through the tree canopy, and the amount and composition of stemflow water.  Finally, any soil classification scheme reflects the combination of climate and vegetation, so soil morphologies of surface and buried soils that are not expected under present-day conditions could indicate a former, and different, vegetation perhaps under the same general climate or in combination with a different climate (268)."

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Native Prairie Grasses and Terrestrial Life

Forest Habitat Types for Farrington, Finchford & Hoopeston from the Soil Survey of Pepin County, Wisconsin

Farrington & Finchford 

PVGy—Pinus strobus/Vaccinium-Gaylussacia

The common name is White pine/Low sweet blueberry-Huckleberry.  This habitat type is classified as very dry or dry/poor nutrient.  It is typically on flats and the lower slopes.  On the steep upper slopes, south and southwest aspects, and narrow ridges, a xeric subtype is recognized.  Although no specific plants reflect these severely dry conditions, tree growth is strongly limited.  Various mixtures of pines (jack pine, red pine, white pine), pin oak, black oak, and white oak occur.  Pines exhibit normal growth, but oaks attain only small stature and poor form.  Red maple occurs mostly as saplings.  In the literature, these communities are commonly referred to as pine and oak barrens.  Shrubs and small trees are poorly developed or do not occur. Serviceberry, black cherry, blackberries, and raspberries are common, but have low coverage.  Red maple and black cherry are typically dominant. Except for bracken fern, herbs are largely absent or sparsely distributed.  Most common are common milkweed, whorled loosestrife, and wild lily of the valley.  All tree species occurring on this type are adapted to fire disturbance. In the absence of fire, white pine appears to be best suited for reproduction in the understory and could be expected to dominate undisturbed stands.  White oak also appears to regenerate well enough to remain as a permanent associate. Red pine, jack pine, and black oak would be less common.  Red maple and black cherry are generally well represented in the sapling layer but attain only small tree size and can be expected to persist as understory associates.

 Farrington, Finchford & Hoopeston 

PVCr—Pinus strobus/Vaccinium-Cornus racemosa

The common name is White pine/Low sweet blueberry-Gray dogwood.  This habitat type is classified as dry/medium nutrient. Mixtures of white oak, black oak, and pin oak and white pine are the most common trees.  Jack pine also is common.  Red oak generally does not occur.  Red maple is common.  This species grows better in areas of this habitat type than in areas of the PVGy habitat type but less well than in areas of the ArDe-V habitat type.  Black cherry is almost always present as saplings but does not develop well into a larger size class.   The shrub and small tree layer is much better represented in areas of this habitat type than in areas of the PVGy habitat type.  Most diagnostic in this respect are gray dogwood and chokecherry.  Black cherry is also better represented in the PVCr habitat type.  Other important species are blackberries, raspberries, hazel, and serviceberry.  The herbaceous layer is poorly developed.  A few species are better represented in areas of this habitat type than in areas of the PVGy habitat type and are useful for identification.  These are wild sarsaparilla, true Solomon's seal, and Virginia creeper.  All tree species are adapted to fire disturbance.  The relative frequency and intensity of fire probably controlled community composition in pre-settlement time.  There is no evidence to suggest that in the absence of fire the same species, with the exception of jack pine, could not maintain themselves on this type.  White pine, because of its much larger stature and longer life span than other species, is presumed to be a potential dominant species.

Hoopeston 

PVRh—Pinus strobus/Vaccinium-Rubus hispidus

The common name is White pine/Low sweet blueberry-Dewberry.  This habitat type is classified as dry-mesic/poor nutrient. White pine, red maple, and pin oak, in various mixtures, are the most common dominant species in current stands.  White oak and jack pine are common associates, but red oak does not normally occur.  The shrub and small tree layer is generally absent or poorly developed.  Huckleberry is conspicuous, but Pepin County, Wisconsin—Part II 215 other species have low coverage. The species that generally occur are black cherry, serviceberry, and winterberry.  Winterberry is best represented in areas of this habitat type.  Conspicuously rare are gray dogwood, chokecherry, and hazel.  All of these species are typically well represented on dry and dry-mesic sites.  Partridgeberry, swamp dewberry, starflower, ground pine, goldthread, bunchberry, and yellow bead lily have only moderate occurrence but readily distinguish this type from others.  These species are characteristically members of northern forests and are rarely found in southern habitat types.  Cinnamon fern may dominate the herb layer, especially where ground water is nearer the surface.  White pine was the dominant pre-settlement species in areas of this habitat type.  Red maple and pin oak were probably always present, but these species assumed dominance after white pine was logged off.  Since then, the white pine seed source has slowly increased, and white pine regeneration is now common in many stands.

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¹Wisconsin Status:
Endangered: continued existence in Wisconsin is in jeopardy.
Threatened: appears likely, within the foreseeable future, to become endangered.
Special Concern: species for which some problem of abundance or distribution is suspected but not yet proven.
Rule: protected or regulated by state or federal legislation or policy; neither endangered nor threatened.
* indicates: A candidate for federal listing.
** indicates: Federally Endangered or Threatened

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Wisconsin Natural Heritage Inventory Map for Pepin County

Vegetation at the Study Site

Gentiana andrewsii Griseb. var. andrewsii

Solidago canadensis L.

Family Asteraceae

Eupatorium

Aster firmus Nees